Tirumantiram and Saiva Siddhanta

Philosophy
Siddhantarathinam
Dr. S. Sundarabalu ,M.A; M.A; Ph.D
Visiting Professor,ICCRs Tamil Chair
Institute of Oriental Studies, Dept. of Indology
Jagiellonian University,
Krakow-Poland
sunder_balu@yahoo.co.in

Medical Logo

Sivalingam-

The lingam

(also, linga, ling, Shiva linga, Shiv ling, Sanskrit , liga,

is a representation of
the Hindu deity Shiva used for worship in
temples. In traditional Indian society, the linga
is rather seen as a symbol of the energy and
potentiality of the God.
The lingam is often represented alongside the
yoni, a symbol of the goddess or of Shakti,
female creative energy. The union of lingam
and yoni represents the "indivisible two-inoneness of male and female, the passive
space and active time from which all life
originates".
meaning "mark", "sign", or "inference")

lingam and Snake

Parts of Cranial Nerves

CN I

CN II
CN IV

CN III
CN V

CN VI

CN VII

CN VIII

CN IX

CN X

CN XI

CN XII
10/14/15

10/14/15

10/14/15

10/14/15

7. Crown Center Top of head

towards back; Connection to
divinity, spirit, bliss; Drive to
transcend.
6. Third Eye Slightly above
midpoint
between
eyes;
Intuition, metaphysical wisdom,
stillness; Drive to know.
5. Throat Chakra Center of
throat; Self-expression, speaking
truth; Drive to communicate.
4. Heart Chakra Center of
chest at breastbone; Love,
compassion,
beauty,
joy,
balance; Drive to connect.
3. Navel Chakra Just below
navel; Personal power, selfdefinition, boundaries; Drive to
act
successfully.
2. Sacral Chakra Internal
reproductive10/14/15
organs; Sensuality,
creativity, abundance, passion;

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SAIVA SIDDHANTA TEXTS

Saivism
The wordHinduismis a common name which
denotes many Indian religions, including Saivism.
It is not a religion by itself. Saivism or Saiva
religion is the dominant religion of the Hindu fold.
Saiva Siddhanta(Saiva Siththaanthamin Tamil)
is the philosophy of Saiva religion which
considers Lord Siva as its primary deity.
Siddhanta means the final conclusion
(reached after taking into consideration all
other important views).
It is the popular philosophical system of the
Tamils of South India, based onSaiva Agamas,
Upanishds,
ancient
Tamil
works,ThirumuraisandMeykanda Sastraworks.

Who am I ?

Is there a God?

What are the natures of God, Soul and the cosmos?

What is my relationship with God and the worldly

things?

What is the reason for happenings in life over

which one has no control?

Such questions often arise in any philosophical

system. Saiva Siddhanta gives plausible answers
and explanations to them.

Eternal Entities
Saiva Siddhanta believes in the three eternal entities
of God, Soul and Bondage (materials of bondage).
These are calledPati, PasuandPasamrespectively in
Siddhanta philosophy.
Patimeans Lord (of the souls) who is God.
Pasammeans bondage.
Pasumeans that which is under bondage.
All things known and perceived are included in these
three categories.According to Saiva Siddhanta God
is one,Souls are manyandPasamconsists of three
impurities
(malams)
calledAnava(anavam),
Karma(kanmam)andMaya(mayai). Like Pati who is
real and eternal, Pasu and Pasam are also real and
eternal.

Existence of God and other eternal entities is

established
by
various
epistemological
means. Logical arguments, based on sense
perception, inference and scripture are
important means of proving their existence.
Anything that has a beginning, existence and
decay is made by someone. It has a maker.
Our physical body including the mental and
psychological equipments, the world and the
worldly things had a beginning. They exist for
a certain period of time and then decay. They,
therefore, have a maker who is God. Existence
of God is thus established by inference. The
existence of other entities is also established
similarly by various means.

God:Siva(Sivam) is the name given to their God

by the Saivites. Siva means One who is perfect
and /or auspicious. His inherent nature is wisdom.
He is with infinite love to benefit the souls. It is His
Grace which is part of Him. Like the sun and its
light,

He

remains

inseparable

with

hisSakthywhich is Grace.Sakthyliterally means

power or energy. He is omnipresent. The Tamil
word for God, Kadavul, meaning One who resides
outside and inside, indicates his omnipresence.

Soul: According to Saiva Siddhanta,Souls are

many. No two persons or beings are alike. We
may therefore, conclude that every living being
has a soul of its own.Anmaanduyirare other
names for soul. Soul has the capabilities to know,
act and desire. These are called itsgnana
sakthy,kriya
sakthyandiccha
sakthyrespectively.
These capabilities are impaired by the associated
entity calledanava. Soul has a dependant nature
and behaves like the one on which it depends.
When it depends on the worldly things, it
behaves like them. When it depends on God, it
behaves like a divine being. This nature of
dependency is called in Tamil as Sarnthathan
Vannamathal.

The most respected shaivite scriptures in

thamiz the thirumuRais , were composed
almost in the first millenium developed the in
the thamiz people the spiritual nourishment.
Based on these holy texts and developed on
the fertility they made in the thought process
gave rise to many philosophers dwelling in the
highly complex question of the Supreme, soul
and surroundings and their inter-relationship.
Among them four are quite significant and are
referred to as sandhAnak kuravargaL. The
texts which are explanatory/ commentory
texts of shiava sidhdhantha, that were written
in this period of 12th to 14th century are
called santhAna nulgal or meykaNda nUlgaL.

While the rest of the thirumuRais are singing

the glory of Lord shiva, the nineth thirumuRai
thirumanthiram is the one that deals in detail
about the philosophy and yoga. These santhAna
texts are absolutely dedicated for philosophical
discussions. These texts analyse the various
factors, logics and experiences, refute and
support the various philosophies on the ground
of raising and answering questions. These are
excellent food for thought and are Shaiva
sidhdhanthic philosophical tutorials.

Tamil Shaivite Literature taalapuraanam and etc :

705
14 chaaththiram (shaastram)guidelines or philosophical treatises

http://www.shaivam.org/siddhanta/san.htm

The Core Saiva Siddhanta Texts - santhAna nulgaL / meykaNda nulgaL Saiva Siddhanta Texts
1. (thiruvundhiyAr)
2. (thirukkaLiRRup padiyAr)
3. (shiva gnAna bodham)
4. (chivanyAna chiththiyAr)
5. (irupA irupaqthu)

Author
thiruviyalUr uyya
vandha dhEvanAyanAr
thirukkadavUr uyya
vandha dhEvar
meykaNda sivam
aruNandi
chivAchchAriyAr

6. (chivap pirakAcham)
7. (thiruvarut payan)
8. (vinA veNpA)
9. (pORRip paqRodai)
10. (kodikkavi)
11. (nenychuvidu thUdhu)

umApati
shivAchchAriyAr

12. (uNmai neRi viLakkam)

13. ( chaNkaRpa nirAkaraNam )
14. (uNmai viLakkam)

manavAchakaN
kadandhAr

 -Sivagnana Bodham

1. ,
,
.

Because the world, consisting of things male, female and

neuter, is subject to the three operations (production,
maintenance, and dissolution), it is an entity produced (by
an Agent).Having dissolved, it comes into being again
because of Impurity. The end is the beginning, say the wise
1. The world perceived to exist in forms male, female, and
neuter undergoes production, maintenance, and dissolution;
for, beside maintenance, production and dissolution also are
seen.

http://www.shaivam.org/tamil/sansivae.pdf

2.
.

He, being one with souls and other than souls,

abides in inseparable union with the Power, so
that souls experience going and coming
because of twofold works.

http://www.shaivam.org/english/sen-san-sivagnana-bothamjmnp.htm

3. , , , ,
, ,
.

By saying that it is not, by saying my body,

by knowing of the five senses, by knowledge
when they are suppressed, by the absence of
feeling and activity in sleep, by knowing when
caused to know, (it is proved that) there is a
soul in the body which is an instrument
produced by Maya.

4. , ,


.

FOURTH SUTRA
The soul is not one of the inner faculties.
But being without knowledge owing to
Innate Impurity, it is associated with them
like a king with his ministers, and has five
states.

5.
.

FIFTH SUTRA
Though body, mouth, eye, nose (and ear) perceive by
the help of the soul, they do not know. Like them,
souls, (though they know), by the grace of the
Peerless One in their knowing(do not know). They are
like the iron in the presence of the magnet
The five senses perceive by the help of the soul: for
unless the soul in union with them perceives, they
cannot perceive. (a) When the soul like a king is there
ruling the five senses, the five senses do not know
the soul. The soul does not perceive unless it
perceives in the senses; and if the soul does not
perceive, the eye cannot see and the ear cannot hear.

7. ,
,

SEVENTH SUTRA
In the presence of the real all things are nonexistent; so the real does not know
(them).The non-real is not; so it
cannot
now(the real).(Therefore)that which knows
both is the soul which is neither.

11.
,
.

Like the soul which makes the seeing eye to

see-in order that the soul may see, the Lord
sees, and makes the soul to see. Therefore in
unforgetting love the soul reaches the feet of
Hara

TIRUMANTIRAM-TIRUMULAR (TAMIL :
)

Tirumantiram- Tirumoolar got initiated by his

guru Nandhi
devar, he lived for 3000 years
and composed Tirumandiram

Tirumular (Tamil: ) was a Tamil Shaivite

mystic and writer, considered one of the sixtythree Nayanars and one of the 18 Siddhars. His
main work, the Tirumantiram, which consists of
over 3000 verses, forms a part of the key text of
the Tamil Shaiva Siddhanta, the Tirumurai.
Legend has it that Tirumlar was a travelling
Shaiva saint and scholar from Kailash who used
his yogic powers to transmigrate (To pass into another body after
death) into the body of a southern cowherd, Mlan.
He would wake up from a state of intense

The Nayanar is said to have been one of the eight

students of Tirunandi Devar. Tirumlar, desiring to see
Agastya Rishi in the Pothia Hills, left Kailasa and
journeyed southwards. On his way, he visited many
Saivite shrines. When he came to Tiruvavaduthurai, he
took a bath in the Kaveri River then went to the Temple.
Upon leaving the Temple and walking along the banks of
the Kaveri, he noticed a herd of cows crying because
their herder had died. Wanting to pacify the grief stricken
cows, the Nayanar entered the body of the cowherd after
safely depositing his own body in the trunk of a tree.
Mlan, the cowherd, was a resident of Sattanur and
drove the cows back into the village in the evening.
Mlans wife was expecting the return of her husband but
when she approached him, he would not allow her to
touch him, but said: Oh lady, I am not your husband.
Adore Lord Siva and attain Liberation. He left and went
away to a near-by Math.

The cowherd's wife complained to the village

elders about her husbands conduct. They
examined him and after they came to the
conclusion that he was a great Yogi who had
attained spiritual eminence, instructed the
lady to have no further contact with him. The
next day, Tirumular followed the cows, but
could not find his body in the trunk of the
tree, where he had left it. It was the Lords
Leela. Lord Siva wanted Tirumular Nayanar to
write a book in Tamil on Saiva Philosophy,
containing the essence of all Siva Agamas.
Tirumular understood the Lords wish and
returned to Tiruvavaduthurai.

Why i preserve
body ?

Why i preserve body

Time was when I despised the body
But than I saw the god with in
And the body , I realized , is the lord's temple
And so I began preserving it
With care infinite -725
725.

Where is the temple of God today?

http://www.hummaa.com/music/album/thiru-moolarin-thiru-mandhiram-thiruthani-n-swaminathan/22696

1823


. 1

1.

2.
3.

4.

Inner core (uLLam; the spiritual heart) is the great temple (perum
kOvil);Fleshy body, the seat of the soul, (the place of union with
Paramaatma) is the temple;
For the compassionate Lord, the mouth is the tower-entrance;
For those with mental clarity, jeevan (life force; soul) soul is the
Shivalingam;

The (deceiving) - five senses are the burning lamps

with within the temple.

1823 Soul is Siva Linga

For the Bounteous Lord

This heart is the sanctum holy,

The fleshly body is temple vast

The mouth is the tower gate;

To them that discern,

Jiva is Sivalinga;

The deceptive senses but the lights that illume

Lord is AtomWithin-Atom

2008



. 2

2008 Lord is Atom-Within-Atom

The Lord is the Beginning of all,
He is the Atom-within-the-atom;
Divide an atom within the atom,
Into parts one thousand,
They who can thus divide
That atom within the atom
May well near the Lord,
He, indeed, is the Atom-within-theatom.

As Aum is He there?

2804: How Siva is Within

The Lord is in our heart,
As Aum is He there,
As Fire is He there,
As Order is He there,
As Space in body is He there,
He, the One Being.
2804


. 1

five elements of world and human

body

space

air
fire
water

earth

2671: God's Form

As mouth, eye, body and life
The Yoga-God is;
Beyond earth, water, fire, wind
and sky
Void His Form is.
2671

Na, Ma, Si, Va, Ya and human

senses

2701


. 4

2701: How Aum and the Five Letters are

Distributed in the Six
Centers
In the six Adharas (centers) within
Are distributed the Five Letters and Aum;
That comprise Aum Nama Sivaya (Na, Ma, Si, Va,
Ya);
In the Muladhara is Na
In the Svadhishtana is Ma
In the Navel Center is Si
In the Heart Center is Va
In the Throat Center is Ya
In the Eye-brow Center is Aum.

52

Touc
h

Skin

Illusi
on

na

Taste

Tongue

Arroga
nce

ma

Sigh
t

Eye

God

ci

Sme
ll

Nos
e

Pow
er

va

Ear

Sou
nd

Soul

ya

Existence and
nonexistence

2941


. 6

2941: Attributes of Siva

Formless is He,
Body less is He,
Blemish less is He,
Rich less is He,
Harmless is He,
Celestial of celestials is He,
Contention less is He,
Bhoota-army possessed is He,
Attachment less is He,
He entered my thoughts.

Love and Siva are One

270: Love and Siva are One

The ignorant prate that Love and Siva are two,
But none do know that Love alone is Siva
When men but know that Love and Siva are the
same,
Love as Siva, they e'er remained.
270.



.

How Soon the Dead are

Forgotten

145: How Soon the Dead are Forgotten

The neighbours gathered wailing loud and long,
Denied him now a name, called him corpse,
And bore him to the burning ghat and the body
burnt,
Then a ceremonial dip--and memory dies as the
hours lapse.

. 3

Gifts us

252: Charity is Within Reach of All

Easy to all to offer in worship a green leaf to
the Lord,
Easy to all to give a mouthful to the cow,
Easy to all to give a handful, sitting down to
eat,
Easy to all, good, kind words on others to
bestow.



. 2

Among the many revelations that Mohenjadaro and

Harappa have in store for us, none perhaps is more
remarkable than this discovery that Saivism has a
history going back to the chalcolithic age John
Marshall

The Saiva religion and its philosophy are

praised highly by scholars.
Saivism is the oldest pre-historic religion of
S. India G.U.Pope
One of the most closely reasoned religious
philosophies found anywhere in
the world. John H. Piet